Review: Unearthly Rites – Tortural Symphony of the Flesh

April 7, 2026

Dystopian Rites

Formed in 2020, Finnish death metal act Unearthly Rites originated from the roots of the DIY punk and hardcore scenes in the country. Through their music, the band have explored the dystopian scenes of colonial greed and ecocide with their EP in 2021 and debut album, Ecdysis, from 2024. These releases showed a promising band in the underground death metal scene that was trying to define their own unique personality in the music. Now they have their sophomore album in Tortural Symphony of the Flesh, the aim of which is to expound their disgust on capitalist oppression in the form of their own bludgeoning death metal sound.

The album opens up with the noisy and filthy “Tuonen Tulijat, manan menijat.” The tone reminds me a bit of Morbific, but also there’s an In Battle… There is No Law-era Bolt Thrower rhythm to it thanks to the sick messy guitar solo delivered in this song. The band starts going for more of a death/doom vibe with “Solki Fields Forever / A Radiative Picnic,” and as the song progresses, it ramps up with hard sections. The vocal range shown by Sisli mixes really well with the death and grind styles shown here, adding to the dystopian vibe they want to give in their sound. Following this is another doom-laden song in “Solstice,” which at first blush felt like it was missing the pacing I liked in the previous tracks, but it has grown on me on further listens.

The main issue I have with this album is that it sometimes it feels like it grinds itself to a halt with interludes that are unnecessary. The best example of this is in “A Stygian Winterscape,” which is three minutes long; while it sounds nice, it outstays its welcome due to the length. Despite this, the band rebounds back to what it does best in the title track, “Tortural Symphony of the Flesh.” This song displays more of the range in Sisli’s vocals and there’s a nice pummeling feel to it which works for the death metal sound they’re going for here. I enjoy this track even more when it gets into more of a punk/stenchcore turn on the latter half of the song that hits hard. This leads to the longest track of the release, “Ignis fatuus,” which shows off how the drumming really shines. It also shows how the band can feel upfront and intense when they’re in their more hammering grind style during those sections.

One of my favorite tracks is “Metalli, liha, kone,” which thrives the most in its more intense pacing throughout. Does a great job in transitioning between the more intense and doom styles without losing any momentum. Unearthly Rites go for a groovier take in “Absurd Transgression” that’s actually pretty fun. Sisli takes a different approach in the vocals with a deeper and lower tone that fits the crunchy and groovy style this song has. There’s another interlude afterwards in “Not for the Weak,” but at least here it’s half a minute. Closing this latest effort is “The Notion of Emerging Totalitarianism” that ends on a well-done high. It has a similar structure to “Ignis fatuus,” but I think this one is better in execution.

Unearthly Rites have done a good effort following up on their debut album. Still feel like there’s more potential from what I heard here. They could probably have a tighter effort that focuses on their stenchcore, punky & grind moments and less on the empty interludes & doomier aspects. However, despite those issues, Tortural Symphony of the Flesh thrives by the band’s filthy death metal tone that fits the dystopian mood they wanted to show here. In addition, the great vocal performance throughout from Sisli and the guitar solos that have that messy DIY feel to them elevate album further. It makes me curious what a future effort holds from the band, as I’d love to see the next release be one that plays to the strengths that Unearthly Rites thrive the most on.